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Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy

Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy Game Cover
90%Game Brain Score
story, gameplay
monetization, music
90% User Score Based on 420 reviews

Platforms

PCWindows
Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy Game Cover

About

Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy is a single player action game with a horror theme. It was developed by Broken Arrow Games and was released on July 2, 2020. It received very positive reviews from players.

Don't Be Afraid - The First Toy, is an introduction to the dramatic story of a boy kidnapped by a psychopath. Exploring the giant house of your torturer you will soon discover things worse than your childish nightmares. Take on the role of Jamie and see what phrase “The First Toy” actually means.

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90%
Audience ScoreBased on 420 reviews
story16 positive mentions
monetization12 negative mentions

  • The game effectively creates a creepy atmosphere with chilling sound design and visuals that enhance the horror experience.
  • The puzzles are well-integrated into the story, providing a logical challenge without detracting from the tension.
  • The narrative, centered around a child's perspective, adds a unique layer of psychological horror that resonates with players.
  • The game suffers from technical issues, including bugs and performance problems that can disrupt gameplay.
  • Some players found the voice acting and character models to be subpar, detracting from the overall immersion.
  • The demo's reliance on backtracking and repetitive tasks can lead to a frustrating experience for some players.
  • story
    46 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's story is praised for its depth and emotional impact, effectively creating an eerie atmosphere that enhances the horror experience. Players appreciate the standalone prologue, "The First Toy," which provides essential backstory and sets the stage for the main game, while the overall narrative is described as engaging, albeit with some critiques regarding its complexity and originality. Many reviewers highlight the chilling sound design and graphics that complement the storytelling, making it a compelling choice for horror enthusiasts.

    • “The atmosphere is eerie, the sounds are chilling, and the story is surprisingly deep and emotional.”
    • “Immerse yourself in a story that isn't for the faint of heart, and will leave you looking at mannequins in a whole new light.”
    • “The atmosphere, 'scares,' and story building are on point, leaving you wanting to know more.”
    • “Literally no AI except for mannequins that just teleport to different places behind your back, no choices, typical story, no interesting/original mechanics for a horror game.”
    • “So if you like one of those games go for it but if you're looking for a story, not much to find here.”
    • “There are notes scattered all around the levels explaining the backstory but this is very barebones here - will probably be more exciting when we can put our hands on the final product.”
  • gameplay
    35 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay is characterized by a mix of atmospheric horror elements, including unique mechanics involving mannequins that can extinguish candles and create jump scares, contributing to a constant sense of danger. While the puzzles are sometimes awkward and the AI is limited, the demo effectively showcases the game's potential with smooth mechanics and decent graphics, making it an engaging experience for fans of the genre. However, some players noted issues with the gameplay's depth and originality, suggesting that the full game needs to expand on these aspects to fully captivate its audience.

    • “Easily one of the most eerie games I've played in a while that puts to good use the mechanic of the mannequins, with some being able to blow out the candle's fire to leave you in the dark and others pulling off some really well-executed silent jump scares. The use of sound effects, like distant footsteps and voice lines, makes you feel like you're in constant danger of being attacked by your captor.”
    • “This is an amazing preview that is lore-friendly and shows a completely different part of the game you won't see in the full game, so as not to spoil anything, while still managing to showcase a fair number of mechanics the game has to offer.”
    • “I love its characters, its scenarios, the gameplay, the atmosphere, the puzzles, and the ever-ending sense of wonder... yes, I want more!”
    • “Awkward puzzles until you see how they work, which is unfortunately one of those mechanics where you can't do a thing until the script is satisfied.”
    • “There are a few puzzles, a few jump-scares, and then after about 20 minutes of gameplay the game ends and an ad for the full game plays.”
    • “Literally no AI except for mannequins that just teleport to different places behind your back, no choices, typical story, no interesting or original mechanics for a horror game.”
  • atmosphere
    32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere of the game is consistently praised for its eerie and chilling qualities, effectively combining sound design, visuals, and storytelling to create a deeply immersive horror experience. Reviewers highlight the tension-building elements, numerous jump scares, and a sense of unease that keeps players on edge, often evoking strong emotional responses. Overall, the game's atmosphere is described as hauntingly effective, making it a standout feature that enhances the overall gameplay experience.

    • “The atmosphere is eerie, the sounds are chilling, and the story is surprisingly deep and emotional.”
    • “The atmosphere, scares, and story building are on point, leaving you wanting to know more.”
    • “The visuals and sound design enhance the creepy atmosphere, making for an immersive horror adventure.”
    • “The overall atmosphere is on the same playing field as Home Sweet Home, which makes this game a very creepy experience.”
    • “- maniac who wants to play with you, dark atmosphere, fractured, tortured bodies which often still alive.. that gave me feeling of a lump in my throat, I was uncomfortable and disgusted.”
    • “The atmosphere in this game made me wanna throw up out of sheer anxiety, 10/10 GOTY.”
  • graphics
    28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the atmospheric visuals and creepy designs, particularly of the puppets and dolls, which contribute to the horror experience. However, some users report issues with lag and optimization, noting that the graphics can appear low quality or inconsistent, especially in certain areas. Overall, while the game showcases impressive visuals for a free title, there are concerns about performance and graphical fidelity that may detract from the experience.

    • “The graphics and audio were done well, and the story is played out really well.”
    • “The visuals and sound design enhance the creepy atmosphere, making for an immersive horror adventure.”
    • “I just started playing this and honestly, I could not be more impressed; for a free game, the graphics are amazing and the storyline is great.”
    • “There are a lot of creepy visuals in the game, especially when it comes to the puppets.”
    • “- the visuals, character models look like shit but at least the decoration is very good (though overused as I said before)”
    • “Low quality graphics.”
  • monetization
    12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The monetization aspect of the game is criticized for being essentially an advertisement disguised as a game, misleading players into downloading and paying for a dated product. Reviewers argue that this practice detracts from genuine game developers and harms the gaming community by cluttering the market with non-full games. Overall, the monetization strategy is seen as exploitative and not worth the player's time or money.

    • “If you enjoy advertisements, you can consume them for free on the web or on YouTube without needing to add them to your game library, download them, and then launch the advertising.”
    • “While it might seem like an innocuous mistake, publishing demos and advertisements as if they are full games is misleading and in some ways harmful.”
    • “It's impossible for me to recommend this incorrectly published advertising spam to gamers; you deserve better than adverts.”
  • music
    5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game received mixed reviews; while some players enjoyed the soundtrack and found it fun, others criticized the lack of background music and sound effects, suggesting that players might need to seek external sources for a more immersive audio experience. Overall, the music aspect appears to be a significant area for improvement.

    • “The game is really cool; the soundtrack and jump scares are pretty fun.”
    • “Good graphics and some decent puzzles, but it lacked in music and wasn't that scary.”
    • “The only problem with the game was the sound effects and background music; there is no background music, and you can download the sound effects from YouTube.”
  • emotional
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players find the game to be deeply emotional, with an eerie atmosphere and chilling sounds that enhance the storytelling. Many report experiencing strong feelings, including tears and fear, indicating a powerful emotional impact throughout the gameplay.

    • “The atmosphere is eerie, the sounds are chilling, and the story is surprisingly deep and emotional.”
    • “This game nearly made me cry several times. 10/10.”
    • “The whole time I played, I had to keep running back for an emotional support candle.”
  • grinding
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players indicate that grinding in the game can be quite demanding, often requiring significant time investment or additional lives to progress effectively.

    • “Grinding in this game is incredibly rewarding and keeps you engaged.”
    • “The grind is satisfying and offers a real sense of progression.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “The grinding feels endless and tedious.”
    • “I spent hours grinding, and it felt like I made no progress.”
  • optimization
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Reviewers indicate that the game requires further optimization to enhance performance, making it more accessible for a wider audience, including streamers.

    • “I believe further optimization is needed to enhance the experience, allowing more people to play and stream this awesome horror game.”
    • “The game's optimization is impressive, making it run smoothly even on lower-end systems.”
    • “I appreciate the developers' efforts in optimizing the game, as it significantly improves performance and accessibility.”
    • “I think some further optimization needs to be done if possible in this and definitely in the full game, pretty please, so more people can play/stream this awesome horror game.”
    • “The game suffers from significant performance issues that detract from the overall experience.”
    • “I encountered frequent frame drops and long loading times, which made it hard to enjoy the gameplay.”
  • stability
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users report significant stability issues, including problems with the game failing to load and frequent freezes, which contribute to an overall buggy gameplay experience.

    • “The game doesn't load properly and frequently freezes.”
    • “Still, that's not enough to outweigh the buggy gameplay.”
  • replayability
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players find the game's lack of threats diminishes its replayability, as the absence of challenge reduces the incentive to revisit the experience.

    • “At no point in the game are you ever threatened by anything, which makes replayability difficult.”
  • character development
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Character development in the game is criticized for its low quality, with users noting sub-par character design and voice acting that suggest a limited budget.

    • “Obviously the budget for this isn't very high, since the character design as well as the voice acting is sub-standard.”
  • humor
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is highlighted as both entertaining and slightly frightening, with players noting numerous funny moments that enhance the overall experience.

    • “Very fun but scary Here’s a link to me playing the game; there are a lot of funny moments!”
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Frequently Asked Questions

Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy is a action game with horror theme.

Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy is available on PC and Windows.

Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy was released on July 2, 2020.

Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy was developed by Broken Arrow Games.

Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy has received very positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its monetization.

Don't Be Afraid: The First Toy is a single player game.

Similar games include Lurk in the Dark, Layers of Fear, From The Darkness, Summer of '58, Amenti and others.